Process for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes.



1. ZUGMAIER & J. WU'RNWAG.

PROCESS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF WHEELS WITH WIRE SPOKES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 21. 1914.

1,149,015. Patented Aug. 1915.

la;- l

I 9 M I g M v COLUMBIA PLANDGRAPH 60., wAsHlNpl'oN, D. c.

esse meas es. A JAKQB WQliNWAa UNTERWRVKHEIIMPV' "GERMAN? rnoonss Fen mrrniaeuuneoruim or WHEELS wrrn WIRESPOKES.

atentea Aug. 3, 1915.

- Application filedJ'une27, 1914. Serial No. 847,640.

To all whom z't may concemm 1 Be it known that-we, J osnn ZUGMAIER and 'JAKoB WoRNwAo, citizens offthe German Empire, residing, respectively, at Vai'hingen and Untertiirkheim, in the Kingdom of Wurttemberg, Germany, have-invented certain new and useful Improvements yin Processes for the Manufacture ofWheels with Wire Spokes;and wje dohereby declare thefollowing to be afull, olear', and exact description of the invention, such as will'enable others skilled inthe a rt to which it appertains to make anduse the same. The present invention relates to a process for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes.

According tothe inventionthe spokes are not attached singly between the hub and rim in the usual wayv but are simultaneously tensioned with a' certain amount of constraint. The wires forming the spokes are tensioned in a uniform distribution, over the circumferencesof two or moreparallel rings of a size corresponding to the wheel which is to be formed; the spokes are arranged so that a cage-like or lattice-like structure results. The rings are then brought closer together by pulling together the middle partsof the sbokes b'etween the rings; the parts pulledin'are thenfastened in the middle, a 92 by a sleeve or the like forming the hub afterwhich the rings are drawn together and to prevent springing back. The spokes can be pulled together between the rings. eitherby twisting the rings with respect to one another, whenthe wires cross in the middle and'thus form the hub together with a sleeve or other "suitable member, or else the wires can be directly pulled together by means of a sleeve forming the hub; the wire spokes are'then tensioned by axially tensioning the rings and if desired simultaneously twistingthe rings. a

In the accompanying drawings, Figure *1' is a perspective view of the arrangement of the rings and wires forming the wheel at the beginning of the operation. Figs. 2 and 3 illustrate diagrammatically a further stage in the manufacture of the wire spoke wheels, in elevation and plan of one modification of the process, while Fig. 4 represents a crosssection through the finished wheel made according to such modification. Fig. 5 illus- 1y" locked order tratesdiagrammatically the manufacture of awhefel according to asecond modification. ,Accor.dingto the invention, rings a are held; parallel to one another at any suitable distance by any suitable machine or. device; the wires b'which are to serve as spokesare so wound or tensioned that theyarious wires are parallel to one another and distributed uniformly around; the periphery. of .the

rings or I t Thewire may form a connected piece or maybe t ensionedrbetween the rings in short piecestofsuitable. length. Further if the Wheel is tobe elastiq the wiremay be given a wave shapeoruformedi as a thin spiral spring. ll henj thewire hasbeen wound on 'i(.Fig. 1.) the rings a are brought together 'axially'by pulling togetherthe wires in the middle. In the form shown in Figs. 2-.4,

this is effected by twisting therings' a with respect tooneanother'whenthe wires interlace in the middle and become wound on. a sleeve 0 serving as the hub 2) "which sleeve may have a round, square or other cross section. This rotation of the rings a is continued till all the wire-hasbeenwound .onthe hub'c exceptthat which is to form the spokes. The wire wound on the sleeve 0 is then fastenedemgaby a sleeve (Z in two parts, so that when the rings are. brought still closer together thewire will not unwind from thehub 0.' If the rotation of the rings is continued till they are. fairly close to gether, they are then locked'by screws or in other suitable manner in order to prevent them springing apart after the tension isreleased, or as shown in Fig. 4a common tire e isz pressed over both. Moreover. the spokes may: b'eifurther secured in any-desired manner'so. that if one spoke breaks the others will not give way atthe same time.

' In the form illustrated in Fig. 5, the wires are brought together in the middle by a sleeve 7 on the innerk surface 'of which the wireslie, and through which the wires may be threaded even when they are being fastened to the rings a. On the other hand this sleeve may be made in two parts so that the wires as tensioned in Fig. 1 may be subsequently brought inside the sleeve. The tensioning of the wires forming the spokes is effected in this modification by axially pushing together the rings a or tensioning them with respect to one another, if desired simultaneously twisting them. The further treati wheels with wire spokes which comprises at taching lengths of wire between two rings to form a'cylindrical lattice, bringing togetherthe middles of said lengths, and'then bringing together and securing said rings so as totension the portions of the wire forming the spokes. '2. The process for the. manufacture of wheels with wire spokes which comprises winding parallel lengths of wire between two parallel rings to form a cylindricalilattice, bringing together themiddlesof said lengths, and then bringing together and securing said rings so as to tension the portions of wire forming the spokes.

3. The process for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes-which comprises applying a plurality of lengths of wire between two rings to form a cylindrical lattice, twisting said lattice to bring together the middles of said lengths, securing said middle portions and bringing'together and securing said rings so as to tension vthe 'wire's which form the spokes.

4. The process for the manufactureof wheels with wire spokes which comprises applying a pluralityv of lengths of wire 'betweentwo rings to forma cylindrical lattice, twisting said'lattice around a central sleeve tobringtogether the middles of said lengths, securing said middle portionsand bringing together and securing said rings so as to tension the wires which formthe spokes.

5. The process for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes which comprises applying a plurality of lengths of wire between two rings to form a cylindrical lattice, twisting said lattice around a central sleeve to bring together the middles of said lengths, securing said middle portions by a sleeve andbrin'ging" together and securing said rings so as to tension the'wires which form the spokes.

- 6. The process for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes which comprises applying a plurality of lengths of wire be tween two parallelrings to form a cylindrical lattice, pulling together the middles of said lengths by means of a sleeve, and then pulling and-securing together said rings so as to tension the wires forming the spokes.

7 The process-for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes which comprises .applymg aplurality of lengths of wire to two parallel rings'to forma cylindrical latsleeve, securing the twisted wires upon said sleeve-further twisting the structure and bringing together the rings, and finally securing said rings so that they form the periphery of the wheel. 1

8. Thev process for the manufacture of wheelswith. wire spokes which comprises forming a cylindrical wire lattice upon two rings, constricting the center of said cylin- 'tice, twisting said lattice aboutca central der to form the hub, and bringing together 7 and securing said rings to form the periphery of the wheeland tensioning the spokes thereby.

9. The process for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes which comprises winding a length of wire backward and forward between two parallel rings and thus forming a cylindrical lattice, constricting the middle of said cylinder to form the hub, and then bringing together and securing said rings so as to tension the spokes.

10. The process for the manufacture of wheels with wire spokes which comprises applying a plurality of lengths of wire between two parallelrings to form a cylindrical lattice, twisting said latticeand pulling together the middles of said lengths by means of a sleeve, and then pulling andsefloples of this patent may be obtained for, five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

